d in the veranda, so as to avoid seeing the sad faces within.

"Oh, masther, dear," he said, "what's to be done?"

"I wish I could tell you, Tim."

"It makes a man's heart sore, sir, to see the misthress and her frinds
looking like that.--Mr Braine, sir, begging your pardon for intrudin',
it's only bekase I want to help. Wouldn't a good fight set it straight,
bekase if so, I'm your man."

"Waste of blood, waste of life, and no good done, Tim," said the
Resident, sadly. "We are in God's hands. I cannot see that we can
stir."

"Four of us and Mister Murray, if we could get at him," mused Tim; "that
makes foive, and they're as many hundreds, and got their prahus and
boats beside; but I don't know. The old counthry looks a very shmall
place on the map, but she could beat the world. Well, the masther has
only got to spake, and I'll foight for me misthress and my young lady as
long as I can lift a fist."

As the evening drew near, Tim comforted himself by examining and loading
the guns and pistols that were in the house, and then replaced them,
ready for use at a moment's notice.

But when he had done, he shook his head sadly.

"It's such a whishp of a place to fight in," he said to himself. "Anny
one could knock it all over wid a scaffold pole. Why, if it kim to a
foight, the bastes could run underneath, and shtick their spears through
the flure. An' I'd like to get one crack at the head of the man I
caught doing it."

The dinner-time came, and Tim made another attempt to get the unhappy
party to eat.

"And not a bit of fruit," he muttered. "Wonder whether they'd let us
get some."

He went and spoke to one of the women who acted as servant, and she
readily agreed to go and fetch what was necessary, catching up the
second sarong worn by the Malay women as a veil, and used with the two
ends of the long scarf-like article of attire sewn together.

With this over her head, she started off, and the guard now looked up
sharply, but they had no orders to interfere and prevent one of the
women from going out, and in less than a quarter of an hour she returned
bearing a basket of mangosteens and bananas.

But it was all labour in vain; the dinner and dessert, so thoughtfully
prepared, remained untouched, and the wine, cool and fresh from the
evaporating it had received, remained on the table.

It was a lovely starlit night, and after Mr Greig had gone, the doctor
and Mr Braine rose from the table to go and